


The Fear That Doesn't Make Sense

by coulson_is_an_avenger



Category: Star Wars: Rebels
Genre: Anxiety, Ezra and Sabine have a sibling dynamic, Ezra has anxiety, Gen, Hera is just mentioned, Mental Health Issues, Panic Attacks, Sabine Knows Things because the mandalorian educational system actually WORKS, Sabine used to have bad anxiety but she doesn't get panic attacks much anymore, Space family, Zeb is barely mentioned, author has anxiety, but I'll leave the specifics of that to your preferred headcanons, growing up on the streets of Lothal doesn't teach you much about how your brain works, same with Kanan and Chopper, she ain't straight tho, sorry guys this is just about my kids, theres one line where it mentions Sabine as LGBT
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-07
Updated: 2018-04-07
Packaged: 2019-04-19 13:13:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,353
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14238054
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coulson_is_an_avenger/pseuds/coulson_is_an_avenger
Summary: Although Ezra has been living with the Ghost Crew for a while now, he has yet to open up to them about his mental health.





	The Fear That Doesn't Make Sense

**Author's Note:**

> This is my very first ever fic on AO3!!! The Ghost Crew is my favorite functional family and I have a lot of feelings about them helping each other with mental health stuff. I apologize if it's a bit rough, this started out as a vent fic, and it's still honestly not as clean as I'd like it to be, but I hope at least some of you guys enjoy it! If there's anything that bothers you about this, or anything that you want tagged, don't hesitate to let me know!! Happy reading <3 <3

“Hey, Ezra!” Sabine Wren banged on the door to the young Jedi’s room. “Hera’s asking us to go on another supply run. You were supposed to be in the _Phantom_ five minutes ago!”

“Go away, Sabine,” Ezra Bridger shot back, his voice muffled behind the metal. “I’m not in the mood!”

“You’re gonna need a better reason than that,” Sabine scoffed, rolling her eyes. “Am I gonna have to come in there?”

“No! I said go away!”

“You asked for it,” The Mandalorian punched a button on the door’s access panel, and the door slid open with a _whoosh_. She had barely taken a step into the room before finding herself directly in the path of a flying scout trooper’s helmet. She dodged the projectile at the last second and turned to watch as it bounced out into the hallway.

“Hey! Cut it out!” She snapped, glaring up at the culprit as she walked further into the room. “You could have hit me!”

“Well, I _did_ warn you to stay out of here!” Ezra glared down at her from his bunk, another helmet sitting in his hands, ready to throw.

Sabine put a hand on her hip and frowned, putting on her ‘big sister’ face. “Okay, listen. I _know_ you’re still getting used to everything here, but we have a couple of rules you need to remember. One;” She held up a finger. “You don’t get to opt out of missions unless you have a good reason, and two; don’t throw things!”

“Why isn’t there a rule against breaking into people’s rooms?” He dropped the helmet in his lap to cross his arms and glare at her from the corner of his eyes. “And besides, what if I _do_ have a good reason for not going?”

“Then you have to tell Hera that reason?” Sabine sighed. “Come on, Ezra, what’s going on?”

“Nothing I want to tell you!” Ezra picked the helmet back up and chucked it, aiming for the Mandalorian’s face. Sabine, however, was prepared this time and caught the projectile easily.

“Can you please stop doing that?” She hurtled the helmet back, and he was forced to dodge it, accidentally throwing himself towards the edge of the bunk in doing so. The Jedi struggled to keep himself upright for a moment, but inevitably lost his balance and tumbled to the floor with a painful yelp.

Sabine bit back a laugh and moved to help him up. “Are you okay?” She extended a hand to help.

“Get off of me!” He swatted her hand away and stood by himself, brushing off his clothes with sharp motions. “I’m fine.”

“What is up with you today?” Sabine stepped back and watched him in irritation. “Is something wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong, I’m fine, okay! Just go on your stupid supply mission without me.” The young Jedi turned his back to her, preparing to pull himself back onto his bunk.

“Hey,” She grabbed his arm and spun him around to face her. “That’s not how this works. Hera wants you on this supply run, so you better have a good reason for why you’re acting so immature right now.”

“Let go of me, Sabine!” Ezra tried to pull his arm out of her grip, but the Mandalorian was much stronger than him, and he eventually relented. The anger in his eyes slowly diffused and was replaced with exhaustion as his voice grew quiet. “Please.”

Sabine let him go, her expression changing from one of anger to one of concern. “Hey…” She shifted her voice to a more compassionate tone. “Are you okay?”

Ezra sat down on Zeb’s vacant bed with a heavy sigh, his mask dropping. For a moment he seemed very scared and very alone.

“Look, I’m just… not having a good day, okay? You guys haven’t known me very long, but… sometimes this just happens. I have these days where I can’t _do_ anything, alright?” His words were short, and he glanced at her nervously as if expecting her to somehow blame this on him.

Sabine sat down next to him, her lips pressed into a thin line as she tried to understand. “Can you try to explain that a bit better?”

The young Padawan tucked his knees up to his chest. “I mean, I guess it’s just,” He inhaled, choosing his words carefully before he spoke. “Sometimes I get really overwhelmed with… everything. I get this sort of weight on my chest, and sometimes lights feel more bright than usual. Also I get really, _really_ nervous.”

“About what?”

“Usually nothing important.” Ezra turned his face away from her, his voice slightly bitter. “But it- it doesn’t matter. No matter what it is, it feels like it’s swallowing me up, and I… I feel like I can’t _breathe_. I know it sounds stupid. I just…” He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “I can’t focus on a mission when I feel like this.”

“Oh.” Sabine blinked. “Oh, that’s not stupid at all!” Sabine gave him a soothing smile. “Ezra, it sounds like you have anxiety.”

“What?” He turned back to her, not sure if he was being insulted. “What’s anxiety?”

“Anxiety is a mental thing where you get extremely anxious about pretty much anything. Sometimes life, or certain situations, or nothing at all. It doesn’t always make sense, and sometimes you can get these things called panic attacks.” She flashed him an understanding look. “It’s actually pretty common. I used to have those myself sometimes… Mine were usually centered around coming out, if I’m being honest.”

“I can’t believe there’s a word…” His eyes were wide. “What’s… what’s a panic attack?”

“Uh, well, they’re different for everybody,” Sabine tucked a strand of orange hair behind her ear and tried her best to remember what her clan had taught her about it. She _could_ give advice from _her_ past dealings with it, but everyone experienced panic attacks differently, and she guessed that she should probably rely on more general information when educating someone about a mental health issue for the first time. “Some people get really sensitive to sounds or bright lights or touch, some people freeze up, some people just kind of shut down… it depends.”

Ezra stared at the floor, the ghost of a smile on his face. “You mean there’s other people out there who get the same things?”

“Yeah, of course!” Sabine smiled, letting a steady hand fall on his shoulder. “Look, Ezra, I’m sorry I was so harsh with you earlier. I won’t barge in like that again.”

“Heh,” He glanced up at her, his brilliant blue eyes clear and grateful. “Thanks.”

“But seriously, don’t throw helmets at people. Those things could seriously knock someone out.”

This made Ezra laugh, and he promised to remember next time.

“Great,” Sabine nodded, still chuckling slightly. “Also, hey, do you still want to stay here during the mission? Because… a panic attack is a totally valid reason to stay behind.”

“Really?” He bounced to his feet in excitement, before blushing nervously and trying to play it off. “I mean, yeah, I’d really like to stay behind… just this once.”

“Got it. I’ll tell Hera for you, if that’s okay?” She looked to him for confirmation, and Ezra nodded. “Also… I can get Chopper to bring you some hot chocolate if you want it. Hera’s leaving, so he’ll have to make it,” Sabine cracked a smile. “It’ll probably be terrible, but at least it’ll be drinkable.”

Ezra shook his head, chuckling again. “No thanks. I’d rather wait then take my chances with that droid.”

“I don’t blame you,” Sabine laughed, standing up to leave. She patted his head as she walked to the door, mussing his hair up like a Loth-Cat’s fur. He squeaked in mild protest.

The Mandalorian reached the doorway and paused, turning back around. “Good luck in there, kid. If you need anything, Kanan’ll still be here, so you can ask him for help.”

“Thanks Sabine,” Ezra said, his voice serious. “For everything.”

“You’re welcome.” She tossed back. “And thank _you_ for opening up like that. You’re a brave kid.”

**Author's Note:**

> Kudos and comments are much appreciated!! <3


End file.
